1964 Ford Falcon Sprint

Offered here is probably the most famous of all the Alan Mann-prepared Falcons that were the backbone of the Ford's Total Performance program in 1964. This unique batch of Ford Falcon Futura Sprints, fourteen in all, were assigned to Alan Mann by John Holman of Holman and Moody USA at the end of 1963. The association allowed him to firmly establish Alan Mann Racing which dominated the British Saloon Car racing scene until the end of the decade and the distinctive Red and Gold livery became synonymous with well-prepared successful saloons and big GT cars. They won numerous major championships including the British Saloon Car Championship, the European Touring Car Challenge and the FIA World GT Championship for Manufacturers, all with a variety of specially prepared Ford cars. Many of the leading race and rally drivers of the time were employed by Alan Mann Racing, including Sir John Whitmore, Jacky Ickx, Bosse Ljungfeldt, Graham Hill, Frank Gardner, Sir Jackie Stewart and Bruce McLaren.

The Falcon on offer today was originally built by AMR for Graham Hill to drive in that years Monte Carlo Rally where he famously slid wide on the Col de Turini damaging the Falcon' left-hand wing and losing ten minutes. The ex-Monte Falcons were so successful that all the best drivers queued up to drive them including Frank Gardener and they dominated the sixties. It's really then that the our Falcon began its illustrious career in British saloon car racing. Returning from the Monte, the team commenced preparing the car for the British Saloon Car Championship to be driven by Roy Pierpoint. The new Group 5 regulations offered greater scope for innovation and the lightweight Falcons promised to be faster than the Mustangs and Galaxies had ever been and they were. At over 180kg lighter and, with modified suspension and eight-inch rims, they were certainly formidable looking racers.  Alan Mann Racing must have been awash with racing Fords at the time with Falcons and ex-Tour De France Mustangs dominating and endorsing The Total Performance Ford ethos.

Roy Pierpiont made the Falcon a staple diet of the British saloon car scene and the history file contains numerous period photographs leading and racing with all the luminaries of the day and driving the Falcon to many, many wins. Of the twelve races in 1969, Falcons won six times and four of those victories went to Roy Pierpiont in this car. It was then sold to Martin Birrane prior to Martin Thomas becoming the new owner shortly afterwards. For 1970, the regulations switched back to Group 2 and the Falcons in this ‘fibreglass panelled, homologation form’ had no real home in UK motorsport and were sold off around the world

This car eventually had a full rebuild in the nineties by Cambridge Motorsports before being purchased by Ken McBride of Seattle. It was subsequently bought by our vendor and graced The Goodwood Revival in 2022 forming part of the Graham Hill tribute cavalcade. Appropriately it was prepared for the event by Alan Mann Racing nearly sixty years on from when the ex-Monte Falcons of AMR defined saloon racing in the sixties.

This lovely piece of British motorsport history, hallmarked by Graham Hill in the '64 Monte and Roy Pierpoint's 'tin-top' domination over the following years, is ready for the next chapter and would undoubtedly be very welcome at prestige motorsport events anywhere.